


Split

by Smooshy



Category: My Chemical Romance
Genre: F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-11-28
Updated: 2015-11-29
Packaged: 2018-05-03 18:25:23
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,745
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5302073
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Smooshy/pseuds/Smooshy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Frankie and Frank are two personalities living in one body. Where Frankie is innocent and kind, Frank is vicious and cruel. Frankie lives in a half-way house with other young men on probation for various offenses. This is where he meets his only friend, Gerard. While Frankie's psychiatrist tries to dispose of Frank with pills and therapy, Frank isn't so easy to get rid of. He wants out of the darkness in Frankie's mind and decides to use Gerard to help him do it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Frankie and Frank

**Author's Note:**

> It's been several years since I've posted anything, but a lot of my former readers have sent me requests to re-post my old stories. So here's the first. I hope you guys like it. xo Smooshy

Frankie liked living in the two story Victorian on Holly Hill Lane. It belonged to Mona Cryer, a kindly 60 year old woman who had opened up her home to young men in need. Most of the tenants were there for minor drug and alcohol offenses. In exchange for no jail time they would do mandatory rehab and then a year at Mona’s. Frankie was different from all of them. He didn’t remember the events that had sent him to a psychiatric ward for six months and then into Mona’s care and he didn’t think he wanted to.

Gerard was his favorite of the housemates. He was at Mona’s because of drugs and something else that he never disclosed. It didn’t bother Frankie that Gerard didn’t want to tell him everything about his past, particularly since Frankie had no recollection of his own. All he knew was that Gerard was nice to him and over time became like an older brother. Things might have stayed that way forever but they didn’t.

It was after midnight and Gerard told Frankie he had a surprise for him. They tiptoed quietly down the hall to Frankie’s room and sat down on the twin bed. “I swiped this from Mona’s liquor cabinet,” Gerard smiled, brandishing a nearly full bottle of vodka. 

Frankie’s eyes widened. He was twenty-three years old but he had never had alcohol before. The truth was that he may have been twenty-three but his mind functioned much younger. Dr. Morgan had told Frankie that in time he would heal from his past trauma and his mind would catch up with the rest of him. Poor Frankie didn’t know what any of that meant. All he knew was that Gerard was his friend and he didn’t want to disappoint him.

“Does it taste good?” Frankie asked as Gerard unscrewed the lid and took a long swig.

Gerard wiped at his mouth with the back of his hand and tried not to wince too much. “Not too bad,” he said, handing the bottle to Frankie. “After a couple of drinks you won’t even taste it anymore.”

Frankie sniffed at the bottle and then looked up into Gerard’s encouraging eyes. “I don’t know,” Frankie said softly. “I don’t want to get into trouble.”

“I won’t let you get in trouble,” said Gerard. “Come on, Frankie. You’ll like the way it makes you feel. Promise.”

With a deep breath of courage Frankie brought the bottle to his lips and took a large mouthful. It took everything he had not to spit it back out. “Yuck,” he said, sticking out his tongue as the liquor burned through him. “That doesn’t taste good at all.”

Gerard couldn’t help but laugh. “Take another drink.”

Frankie shook his head hard and handed the bottle back. “No, I don’t like it.”

“Well nobody really likes the way it tastes, Frankie. They like the way it makes them feel.” He took another long swig and then tucked a strand of black hair behind his ear. He smiled at Frankie and scooted closer to him. “Just one more.”

Frankie did feel something different. There was a warmth that spread up through his toes all the way to his head. He retrieved the bottle and drank from it quickly, forcing himself to swallow all of it. When he was done his head was swimming but in a way he liked. There was a tingle all over him and he couldn’t help but release a small giggle.

“There ya go,” Gerard smiled, clapping Frankie on the back and then drinking some more.

It wasn’t long before the bottle was nearly gone and the two of them were lying side by side watching TV. Frankie could feel himself wanting to laugh sometimes for no reason and once he started it seemed to infect Gerard too. Then they would both be laughing until their sides hurt.

Gerard turned on his side and looked at Frankie with a sideways smirk. “Told you it would make you feel good.”

“Makes me feel funny,” said Frankie, scrunching up his nose a little as he tried to find more accurate words to describe how he felt.

“Funny where?” Gerard asked softly. When Frankie didn’t answer Gerard placed his hand gently on Frankie’s stomach. “Here? Is this where it feels funny?”

Frankie felt his heart beating just a little faster. He nodded his head and bit into his bottom lip. Gerard scooted even closer so that his mouth was next to Frankie’s ear. He brushed aside the soft brown hair and let out a warm breath. Gerard had never thought of himself as into guys, but there was something about Frankie that made him ache just at the thought of touching him. Maybe it was the innocence that Frankie exuded. He was only two years younger than Gerard but knew almost nothing about the world. 

“Something’s wrong,” Frankie breathed as he looked down his chest to the hand that was inching farther down his stomach. “It still feels funny.”

Gerard didn’t think about what he did next, his hand moved on its own. He cupped Frankie and felt the hardness. “It’s okay,” he said, squeezing gently as Frankie let out a breathy whimper. “It’s supposed to feel that way.”

Frankie’s eyes closed as Gerard continued to rub him over his jeans, his own erection damn near painful. He pushed himself into Frankie’s hip as the television continued to cast the room in flashes of soft blue light. Suddenly Frankie stiffened and his hand grabbed at Gerard’s wrist flinging it away. There were tears streaming down Frankie’s face as he scrambled off the bed and hurried into a corner of the room. 

“Frankie?” Gerard asked with concern as he sat up. “Are you okay?”

Frankie pulled his knees into his chest and lowered his head, still crying. He was mumbling something and it took a few seconds before Gerard realized Frankie was counting. It hit him then what had happened, what he had _made_ happen, and the fear started to creep up. If Mona found out that he had stolen the liquor, that he’d goaded Frankie into drinking, he would be thrown out of the house and sent back to rehab. Or worse, jail. 

“Listen man,” he said, moving toward Frankie slowly and then crouching down in front of him. “I didn’t mean that, okay? Honestly, I just was too drunk. People do stupid shit when they’re drunk.” He waited for Frankie to acknowledge him but he didn’t. He just kept rocking back and forth and counting softly. “Look, I’m going back to my room, okay? Try and go to sleep. Just…just don’t think about it. I’ll see you in the morning and we’ll figure it all out.”

He stood up and grabbed the bottle off the nightstand, shooting Frankie one last glance before he slipped out the door and moved quietly down the hall back to his own room. 

*****

Frank opened his eyes and found himself clutching his knees to his chest. There was an uncomfortable ache in his groin and the taste of vodka on his tongue. Then he remembered. He had watched from his dark place in Frankie’s mind as the events unfolded. He had known that he would be coming out as soon as Gerard touched Frankie’s dick. Part of him wanted to shout out a thank you. How long had it been since he had been released from that deep darkness and allowed to experience the real world? Frank couldn’t remember. All he knew was that it had been too long.

He scrambled to his feet and hurried across the hall to the bathroom. After pissing for what felt like forever he went back into Frankie’s room and stripped off his clothes. His dick was still hard so he fell back on the bed and took care of it. The orgasm left him shaking. It was always like that when he emerged from the darkness. Everything felt so good, so real, that he couldn’t get enough. There was no telling when Frankie would come back and that meant Frank would have to enjoy the time while he could. 

As he rummaged through Frankie’s drawers for the cigarettes he had stashed there the last time he was free, it hit him that he didn’t want to go back. He couldn’t. This world was no place for someone like Frankie. He was too sweet, too stupid and too innocent to survive it. Not like Frank. He had been created to exist in the most depraved and dangerous places. Hell, he _was_ the darkness. 

Whenever Frankie went away it was to his own special world inside his head. It was nothing like the darkness Frank existed in. Frankie had created his own fairytale utopia complete with a castle and a princess in a tower. It was enough to make Frank want to puke. 

He opened Frankie’s bedroom window and lit a cigarette, holding the smoke deep in his lungs before exhaling slowly. Convincing Frankie to go away forever and allow Frank to live in the light wouldn’t be easy, but he knew Frankie well enough to know it could be done. It would just take some careful planning and maybe someone to help him along the way. With a smirk he turned toward the bedroom door and thought about Gerard down the hall. 

****

Frank waited a few moments before he gripped the sheet covering Gerard and pulled it back. He couldn’t hold in the laugh that erupted when he saw the look of utter shock and embarrassment on Gerard’s face. One hand was gripping his cock while the other held tight to the sheets.

“Frankie, what the hell?” he grabbed for the sheet and pulled it over his body. “Jesus, kid, didn’t anyone ever tell you it’s rude not to knock?”

“Little late to be shy isn’t it?” Frank asked with a raised brow. He noticed the way Gerard’s head cocked ever so slightly to the right. Shit, he wasn’t supposed to be himself right now; he was supposed to be playing Frankie. “Jeez Gerard, I’m sorry. I just…well I couldn’t sleep.”

Gerard’s face relaxed a little. Obviously Frankie forgot about everything that had transpired a few hours earlier. “It’s cool,” he said then reached to the right of his bed and grabbed a pair of faded jeans. Frank had to bite his lip hard to keep from laughing as Gerard struggled to put them on under the blankets. Once dressed he pushed the covers away and sat up. “So what’s on your mind?”

“Not much,” Frank said, sitting down next to Gerard on the bed. He deliberately brushed his arm along Gerard’s just to watch him tense. “Wanna get out of here?” he suggested, plastering a goofy smile on his face like one he imagined Frankie would wear. 

“What are you talking about?” Gerard flipped his hair out of his eyes and walked to his window where a pack of cigarettes were waiting on the sill. He lit one then blew the smoke out slow before turning eyes back to Frank. “There are three doors in this place that lock, remember? The front, the back and Mona’s private get away. She has the key to all three.”

Frank rolled his eyes. “So what? We could go out the window.” He joined Gerard and peered down. It wasn’t a far drop and if they hung from the sill and then let go the drop would be even shorter. 

“Yeah? Well, tell me genius, how the hell do we get back in?”

Frank clenched his jaw. He didn’t like Gerard talking to him that way but he did have a point. As soon as Frankie was gone for good and Gerard learned about Frank he would make sure he knew who had the upper hand. “Alright, so we’ll use the sheets and make a rope.”

Gerard gave Frank a strange look then flicked his half-finished cigarette out the window. “When did you become the adventurous type? Have you forgotten that you’re afraid of heights, Frankie? Last week you nearly had a heart attack when Mona asked you to climb the ladder and change the light bulb in your room.”

Fucking Frankie, the kid was just one big pile of chicken shit and Frank was left to clean up the mess. “I’m tired of being like that,” he said simply. “Come on, Gerard. Don’t be a woosie. We’ll find a way to sneak in. Besides, even if he we get caught what’s the worst that could happen?”

Gerard’s eyes grew wide. “Are you kidding me? Jail, Frankie, that’s the worst that could happen to me. Look, I don’t know what you’re playing at. If this is about earlier I said I was sorry, okay. I mean, I was drunk. I wouldn’t have done that shit if I wasn’t.”

Sure you wouldn’t, Frank thought. Still, Frank couldn’t do what he planned without Gerard. He decided it was probably best to wait until morning. He hoped he could hold Frankie off that long. “I’m not mad about earlier,” Frank said in his best Frankie impersonation. “I mean, it…it felt good and all.” He turned his eyes up at Gerard and gave him a soft smile. 

Gerard swallowed hard. “We can go out tomorrow. You have a day pass, right?”

Did he have a day pass? Shit, he really should have paid more attention to the little details of Frankie’s boring existence. “Sure,” he said, figuring if he didn’t have one sweet little Frankie could probably talk one out of Mona. 

“Me too. So tomorrow we’ll go out. You have anything special you want to do?”

Frank could feel his smirk starting and quickly changed it into a smile. “Yep, I have lots of things I want to do.”

* * *

“I don’t know about this,” Gerard said, staring at the two boxes of hair dye in Frank’s hands. “What’s wrong with your hair now?”

“I want to change it,” Frank answered simply. He was growing tired of Gerard trying to baby him. If only he knew who he was really dealing with. “I have it all planned out in my head.”

Frank smiled to himself. He could hear Frankie somewhere in the distance telling him that his time was up but Frank wasn’t ready to fall back just yet. He had a few things to do first. If he was really ever going to be free from that dark place in Frankie’s mind he would have to break Frankie down first. A few minor physical changes followed by some very personal ones should be enough to send Frankie running back to his fairytale land. 

When they got back to Mona’s Frank explained very carefully to Gerard what he wanted. He’d seen it in a magazine. He would trim the sides of his hair very short, bleach it blonde and then dye the top a dark burgundy. Not only would he look more like he felt and less like a pansy but it would shock the shit out of Frankie. 

Gerard stood behind Frank at the vanity with the clippers in his hand. “I don’t know about this, Frankie.”

“Stop calling me Frankie!”

Gerard’s brows furrowed. “Well, what the hell am I supposed to call you then?”

Frank took a deep breath. Calm down, don’t blow your cover. “Frank,” he said gently. “I’d like it if you called me Frank.”

Gerard’s frustration was growing. He couldn’t figure out how Frankie had done such a 180 over night. He didn’t blame the kid for wanting to grow up, hell he was twenty-three and still acted like a little boy most of the time, but this was insane. Maybe it was his fault for slipping the kid booze and then getting fresh with him. Then again, Gerard had been drunk. He would never have tried something with another guy if he hadn’t had all that liquor. He pushed the thought from his mind and decided if Frankie wanted a haircut he would give it to him.

“Alright, _Frank_ , let’s get this show on the road.”

Frank clenched his fists by his side. He’d let Gerard pay for that one at a later date in time. Right now he would just close his eyes, take a deep breath and wait. He heard the buzz of the clippers and then felt Frankie’s soft brown hair falling in gentle whispers down his face. Inside he started to laugh, a mad cackle he hoped Frankie could hear. 

* * * 

Frankie was floating somewhere between asleep and awake. The last thing he remembered was standing in front of his castle screaming and crying for Frank to let him come back. It used to be easier. Before he could simply will himself back to the forefront and Frank would go whizzing past him in the darkness, cussing and yelling at Frankie that it wasn’t fair. But since he had stopped taking his medications it was a little harder. 

Frankie was afraid to open his eyes for fear that when he did Frank would be there laughing at him. After several minutes of simply lying there he finally found the courage to peek. His room was empty, the early morning light filling his room with a soft orange glow. No Frank anywhere. There was a hard knock at the door and without being asked Gerard pushed it open and stuck his head around the corner. 

“You plan to sleep all day?” he asked with a grin.

Frankie sat up and rubbed at his eyes. “What time is it?” he asked groggily.

“Almost ten.” Gerard entered the room fully and closed the door behind him. “You said you wanted to go out today.”

Frankie felt his chest tighten. He didn’t remember anything. The last memory was of going to sleep and Frank promising to be good. He wasn’t supposed to come out and make friends with Gerard. That was Frankie’s friend, his only friend. Panic seized Frankie as he looked up into Gerard’s face. What if he liked Frank better? He wanted to ask Gerard how long he had been away but knew he couldn’t.

“I need to go to the bathroom,” Frankie said slowly. His bladder clenched. It was like had hadn’t gone in a few days. 

“Well go then,” said Gerard with mild confusion. “What’s stopping you?”

Frankie held the comforter up to his bare chest. Frank slept naked, always. His cheeks burned red and he dropped his eyes. “I’m naked.”

Gerard could only nod slowly. “Okay.” He stood up and walked back to Frankie’s door. “I’ll meet you down stairs.”

Frankie nodded and as soon as Gerard left the room threw back the covers and jumped off the bed. He hurried over to his dresser and retrieved a pair of boxers; jeans and a t-shirt his doctor had given him for Christmas. It had a happy face on it with the words I’M NOT CRAZY, JUST SPECIAL written in white block lettering. He hurried to the bathroom and shut the door hating that it didn’t lock. He passed the vanity and quickly took himself out of his jeans, sighing with relief as his bladder emptied. Wait. Who was that person he saw in the mirror? He zipped himself up, flushed and then slowly walked back to the mirror. What he saw staring back at him was not the image of himself. His brown hair had been butchered, a silver ring glittered from his nose and there on his bottom lip was another silver hoop. Tears broke through Frankie’s eyes. 

“Oh, don’t cry about it, Frankie!”

Frankie looked up in the mirror to see Frank standing behind him. His hair, his nose, his lip, they were all just like Frankie’s. “Frank, you promised! How could you…” He couldn’t finish the sentence and instead started to cry harder. 

“Would you lighten up! It’s just your hair. Besides, you should be thanking me. You look tough now. Nobody will pick on you. I did you a favor.”

“Nobody picks on me,” Frankie said with a sniff. “You did this just to be mean. You said you’d be good if I let you out. I let you out and you did this to me!” He pointed at his face then groaned. “Well, I’m fixing it,” he said sharply. He leaned into the mirror and wondered how to get the rings out of his nose and lip.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Frank said smugly. “You take it out now and you could get an infection. Then you’ll have to go to the doctor and get shots.”

“Shots?” Frankie asked with complete mortification. He dropped his hand and turned so that he and Frank were looking directly at one another. Frank was leaning against the bathroom wall with his arms crossed. He looked even scarier to Frankie now. 

“Honestly, Frankie, look at this as a good thing. It’s time for little Frankie to grow the fuck up. Besides, Gerard thinks you look really cool.” He grinned to himself. He knew that would make Frankie think twice about changing his new physique.

“Really?”

“Yep. He couldn’t stop talking about how awesome you are now.” 

Frankie beamed and Frank could only shake his head. Really, was this honestly the person he was supposed to share a body with? Sweet, dumb, idiotic Frankie. If they weren’t forced to share this body Frank figured he would have killed the simpleton years ago. 

Frank siddled up next to Frankie and began looking himself over in the mirror. “So, Frankie boy, how was your time in la la land?”

Frankie shrugged his shoulders. “It’s hard to remember it when I come back here.”

“Well, maybe if you stayed longer you wouldn’t forget so easily.”

Frankie narrowed his eyes. “No way! I’m not that stupid. You can’t come back out.”

“You know Frankie, if I really wanted to I could come out all on my own and you’d be trapped in here forever!” He jabbed his finger into his temple and fixed his steely stare on Frankie. 

“Not if I take my pills,” Frankie countered. He saw the way Frank flinched a little and it made him stand up straighter. “If I take my pills you go away forever.”

“Well go ahead then,” Frank retorted, much more calmly then Frankie was expecting. “Become a walking vegetable. Just remember that when you took those pills no one wanted to talk to you. Gerard didn’t even know you existed. No one likes to sit around with a guy who drools on himself.”

Frankie gasped in horror. “I did not drool on myself, Frank!”

“How do you know?” Frank asked with a smirk. “When you take those pills you just sit around mumbling to the television. You’re even weirder with them. So, go on Mr. Tough Stuff, take a pill.” He leaned into Frankie who stepped back until his butt hit the sink. “I dare you.”

Frankie bit down on his lower lip flinching when his teeth clanked against the new lip ring. He didn’t know if Frank was lying to him or not. It was true that when he took his pills he didn’t talk to anyone and no one talked to him. But did he really do things like drool? Gerard wouldn’t want to be his friend anymore and Frankie couldn’t bear that. If only there was some way he could get Frank to agree not to do bad things when he came out.

In truth, Frank had been pretty good. Sure, he’d cut off Frankie’s hair and pierced him but he hadn’t hurt anyone. Maybe he really did just want a chance to be out in the real world instead of inside. He didn’t know what the inside was like for Frank; he only knew what it was like for him. Frank’s inside must not have been very fun though. 

“I won’t take the pills.”

Frank gave a short nod and leaned back into the wall. “Well done, Frankie. See, you’re making grown up choices already.”

“But if I let you out you have to promise that you won’t do stuff like this,” he said, tugging at his new hair and missing the way it used to be. “You can take my day passes and go out and stuff but you can’t…” He swallowed down the last sentence not sure how to say it.

“I can’t what?”

“I don’t want you to be friends with Gerard.” Frankie took a step forward quickly, as though he were exerting a new persona to match his new hair. Even in the bright light of the bathroom Frank’s eyes seemed too dark and at first Frankie wasn’t sure what might happen. 

“Fine, I won’t be friends with Gerard. But you know, Frankie, if I don’t talk to him he’ll think it’s you whose mad at him. Incase it escaped your very limited attention span; you and I are sort of a packaged deal. But if you really don’t want me to talk to him…” He let the words hang on the air as he studied his nails, then looked up at Frankie with a wicked gleam. 

Frankie realized that he was going to have to give up on this stipulation and his shoulders slumped once more. His head had started to hurt. Once again he longed to be back in his private world, he wanted to get to the castle tower this time and climb up to his princess that waited for him. He could never remember if he ever reached her or not. The memory of holding her in his arms and kissing her wasn’t there. Maybe Frank was right. Maybe if he spent more time in his world he would be able to hold onto it longer.

“Well,” Frank broke the silence. “Time is wasting. Are you gonna let me out?”

Frankie didn’t say anything in response. He just wanted to go away. He closed his eyes and slid down to the floor where he rested his elbows on his knees. Slowly he felt himself slipping away, farther and farther into that cool darkness until he could feel the wind in his hair. Somewhere in the distance he thought he heard Frank laughing but he didn’t care. He could see his princess in the distance and he kicked his horse hard in the sides so he could get to her faster.

* * * 

“So, what did Mona say about the hair?” Gerard asked as he and Frankie walked down the street. 

“Nothing,” Frank said before sucking hard on the filer of his cigarette. “What can she say? It’s my hair.”

Gerard watched Frankie out of the corner of his eye. He felt like he was looking at someone else. There was more to his friend’s new appearance that had nothing to do with hair or facial jewelry. It was the way he walked, head held high, his eyes taking in everything around them. 

“So,” Gerard said as they came to a stop at the crosswalk. “Are you ever going to tell me why you’re at the house?”

Frank turned to look at Gerard with a sly smile. “You don’t wanna know.”

“No, I think I do,” said Gerard. “I think you better tell me.”

Frank turned his body so that he was facing Gerard head on. “You really want to know, huh? I bet you’ve been chewing on this question since day one.” Frank took a step forward, expecting Gerard to step back but he didn’t. Oh, Frank thought, he wants to play with me does he? Well, we’ll play. “I’m a nutcase,” he said simply. 

Gerard narrowed his eyes. “Define nutcase.”

“Well,” Frank mused, his tongue running across his bottom lip, delighting in the feel of cold metal. “There are so many things that can make a person crazy. When it comes to me it’s quite simply that I’m never the same person. One day I’m one person and the next day I’m another.”

“But why did they send you to the house?”

Frank was beginning to tire of the conversation. It wasn’t any of Gerard’s business where Frankie had been before ending up at Mona’s. Frank did his best to ignore Gerard’s insistent questioning but he kept asking, over and over until Frank felt like he would explode. 

“Seriously, Frankie. Why are you at Mona’s?”

“Because the institute was crowded!” Frank yelled, then slammed his fist against the button on the crosswalk. This conversation was too dangerous. He hadn’t planned on telling Gerard about himself until he was sure Frankie was gone for good. “I need supervision,” he added. The crosswalk changed from DON’T WALK to WALK and Frank sprinted across the street with Gerard running after him. 

“Hey!” Gerard reached out and grabbed hold of his friends arm pulling him to a stop. “Tell me! Tell me the truth. I don’t understand. One day you’re freaking out over drinking a little vodka and the same night you’re ready to scale the fucking wall! What’s going on with you?”

Gerard watched as Frank’s eyes went dark and then he pushed his hands into Gerard’s chest hard, sending him backward into the sidewalk. He grunted as he hit the ground and looked up with confused and somewhat fearful eyes. 

“You grab me like that again and I’ll break your fucking arm!” Frank barked, his chest heaving as he glared down at Gerard. After a few seconds Frank was able to get his anger in check and reached his hand out to the trembling boy on the ground. “Come on,” Frank said. “Get up.” Gerard hesitated but finally took Frank’s hand and let him pull him to his feet. 

“Who are you?” Gerard asked, wiping the hair out of his eyes. “You’re not the Frankie I know.”

Frank grinned. “Nope. I’m sure not. The Frankie you know is somewhere else. And it’s a good thing too because you really can’t have fun when Frankie’s around.” His lips curled slightly. “As I’m sure you know.”

“I…I don’t know what you’re talking about. Frankie, I like you just the way you are.”

“Just the way he is? Really? And here I thought you were a little put off when our dim wit freaked out and left you with a hard on you had to take care of yourself.”

“That…that was…I told you…”

“Yeah, yeah, you were drunk,” Frank huffed, waving his hand dismissively. “I was there you know. Watching from the sidelines, just waiting. I knew any second Frankie was gonna flip his lid. And sure enough, once you got the little shits dick hard it was all over. He had the same reaction to Jim.”

Gerard felt like he might be sick. He had no idea what was happening. Everything was spiraling. “Jim?”

“Jim was his dad,” Frank said pointedly. “Good ole’ Jim who started in on Frankie when he was just a little guy. But he’s gone now. I took care of that.”

“Jesus,” Gerard said, dropping his head and rubbing at his temples. “I had no idea.”

“And you still don’t,” Frank said harshly. “When Frank comes back you can’t tell him you know about all that. You can’t tell him you know about me either.” He glanced across the street seemingly forgetting that Gerard was there. “That would just fuck everything up.”

“Wait!” Gerard sidestepped Frank so he was now in his eye line. “If you’re not Frankie then who are you?”

“I’m Frank. I told you that.”

“This is totally insane,” Gerard mumbled. 

“You’re telling me,” Frank laughed. “Try having to share a body with that walking Hallmark card. Everything is all rainbows and sunshine. You should see what he calls fantasies. Some princess in a tower waving at him.” 

Gerard studied Frank as he continued to stare across the street. It was beginning, slowly, to make a little sense. Obviously the Frankie he had come to know wasn’t the only part that existed. There was this Frank person; brutally honest, loud mouthed and very self-assured. Frankie was virtually split in half. Gerard had seen a show once about multiple personalities but always thought it seemed a little hokey. Meeting Frank had changed his mind considerably. “So why are you telling me this? Does Mona know about you?”

“Oh, yeah, she knows. Just don’t go telling her you’ve met me. You see, Frankie has medications he’s supposed to take. The sweet little dumpling has been kind enough to lay off em’ for a while. That’s what’s made it possible for me to be here again.” He spread his arms and threw his head back, breathing in the air and basking in the warm sunlight. “And it’s good to be back.”

Gerard shoved his hands in his pockets and tried to think about what his next move should be. He could go back to the house and tell Mona everything. It would score him points with his probation officer that was for sure. Maybe when he went back before the judge they would let him go early. 

“Gerard?”

He slowly turned his eyes to Frank. “Yeah?”

“If you tell Mona, I’ll probably do something bad to you.”

Gerard’s breath lodged in his throat. “What?”

“Yeah, you see there’s a reason why Frankie’s doctor is so determined to get rid of me. I have a habit of hurting the people who hurt Frankie. And make no mistake about it, you hurt him. I could tell them about your little party. About how you had Frankie guzzle down half a bottle of vodka so you could get in his pants.” He saw the way Gerard’s eyes filled with tears. Perfect. “Or, we could just hang out some more, get to know each other.” He reached out and placed his hand on Gerard’s shoulder. “Become real friends.”

What choice did Gerard have? He nodded. “Okay, Frank.”

“See,” Frank laughed, clapping Gerard hard on the shoulder. “Don’t you feel better now that it’s all out in the open? I know I do.” He gave Gerard a wink before the crosswalk changed again and he was bounding across the street like a little kid. 

Gerard didn’t know what to do. He just stood there in a daze. He wasn’t even angry, or mad that Frankie had turned out to be something more. It was like he was amazed that it was possible for Frank to even be a part of Frankie. They were so different, like black and white. He heard Frank yelling his name and Gerard broke out of his thoughts. He ran across the street to catch up, no idea what he was really running into. 


	2. Time Tables

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you're enjoying this story and want me to finish posting it, I would love to hear from you. xo Smooshy

Frank realized rather quickly that playing Frankie wasn’t as easy as he thought it would be. He could plaster on the sweet boyish smile, keep his eyes down and pretend to stare into nothingness with ease, but really being Frankie was a lot more than that. 

After he and Gerard left the tattoo shop, it came to him that just changing Frankie’s outside appearance wouldn’t be enough to ensure the kid would stay put in Never Never Land where he belonged. As they climbed the porch steps of the house the scorpion tattoo on Frank’s neck glistened. Gerard looked like he was going to be sick at any moment. It amused Frank that he could keep Gerard under his thumb, but what was he going to do about Mona?

“Frankie! My God! The hair was one thing, but this…” She waved her hands at him and bit down on her lip. “What is going on with you? Do I need to call Dr. Morgan?”

Frank felt his body tense. Dr. Morgan would definitely be on the list of things that would fuck up his plan. He tried to make his face look soft and innocent, then plastered Mona with big doe eyes. 

“Come on, Mona. I’m a big boy! I just wanted to change and you know, prove I wasn’t a scaredy cat.”

“Well, I understand that Frankie, but don’t you think permanently marking your body might be taking that to the extreme?”

Frank dropped his eyes to the floor. Inside he was mentally beating the shit out of her. “I like it,” he mumbled sadly. He lifted his eyes just a little to see that Mona was looking at him with a mothers concern. Finally, her lips turned upward into a smile and she nodded her head. 

“It’s lovely, Frankie,” she said, then turned the full weight of her stare on Gerard who was standing next to Frank trying to be invisible. “May I see you in the kitchen for a moment?” She turned sharply on her heel and disappeared down the hall. 

“Great,” Gerard said glaring at Frank. “Now I’m going to get in all kinds of shit because you just had to get a fucking tattoo.”

“Pipe down,” said Frank with a roll of his eyes. 

“Well, what the hell am I supposed to tell her? It’s obvious that she’s on to you. You think you can pull this off forever?”

“Improvise!” Frank snapped. “Just remember that if you rat me out you’re going back to jail. And this time it won’t be county, but federal prison. That’s where all the child molesters go.”

“Frankie isn’t a child,” Gerard was quick to point out. “And besides, nothing happened anyway.”

Frank inhaled sharply and narrowed his eyes. Without any warning he reached out and grabbed Gerard’s dick, squeezing it when Gerard tried to take a step back. The older boy grunted with pain and doubled over. His eyes filled with tears and he dodged a glance to the right, thankful Mona hadn’t come back to see what was taking him so long.

“Is this nothing, Gerard?” Frank asked with a raised brow. “It sure feels like something to me. When you put your hands on Frankie’s cock you made it something. Frankie’s the biggest kid you’ll ever meet, but he’s still a kid. A poor, defenseless little boy who you took advantage of.” He squeezed harder and Gerard was clenching his jaw hard to keep from crying out. “Now, let’s try this again. What are you gonna do when you go in there?”

“Play…play it…play it cool,” he breathed out.

Frank let go of him and Gerard collapsed against the sofa. “That sounds excellent,” Frank smiled wide. He walked up the stairs and gave an exaggerated yawn. “Think I’ll go to bed now. Frankie dearest has a meeting tomorrow with the good doctor and I can’t really fake it around her.” He began a slow melodic whistle as he went then looked back at Gerard and said, “Maybe you should take him out, you know. Get a chance to say goodbye. I mean, he won’t be here much longer.” He winked at Gerard who watched him walk up the stairs still whistling. “Just remember,” Frank called back, “to keep your hands to yourself.”

Gerard stared at the stairs with disbelief. When he heard Frankie’s bedroom door close upstairs he burst into tears. There was no way out of this except to help Frank and to hope he survived whatever hurricane was coming with him. 

* * *

Frankie woke the next morning with a pain in his neck. Something was making him itch like crazy. When he went to the bathroom he nearly fainted to find the scorpion. He cried for ten minutes, waiting for Frank to show up and tell him he was being a big baby but he never did. Frankie was splashing water on his face when a knock came on the bathroom door. It was Mona. 

“Frankie, hun, you have a 9:30 with Dr. Morgan. If you’re going to be there on time you need to hurry.”

Frankie had completely forgotten his appointment. Surely when she saw him looking like this she would know that Frank had been out. He suddenly wished Frank was with him, to tell him what to say. He closed his eyes and opened them slowly when he heard a quiet chuckling behind him. 

“I was here all along,” Frank said. “Just hiding. I wanted to give you time to get used to that.”

Frankie turned around to find Frank perched on the toilet seat, a scorpion tattoo of his own. “You weren’t supposed to do this,” Frankie said, a slight edge of panic in his voice. “Dr. Morgan…”

“You let me worry about her,” Frank said as he stood up. “You repeat what I tell you and she’ll never know. Remember, you’re the only one who can see me.”

“Yeah,” Frankie mumbled.

He hadn’t always been able to see Frank. For a while he could only hear him. It was when he started meeting with Dr. Morgan that Frank first became visible to him. She had told him not to be afraid of Frank because he was just an extension of Frankie himself. He was a part of him, maybe not the best parts, but a part nonetheless. She put him under hypnosis. Frankie could remember standing in the darkness, nothing but a black void all around him, when a small pinpoint of light appeared in the distance. Out of the darkness and into the light had walked Frank. Dr. Morgan promised that after Frankie came out of the hypnosis he would never see Frank again, only the opposite had happened. He could see him all the time.

Dr. Morgan’s office was rather unremarkable. The walls were pale green; the carpet dark brown and there was a large bookcase that held family photos and various degrees. There was a mahogany desk and a couch, which Frankie had always thought was uncomfortable. He sat on the couch with his hands clasped tightly in his lap, legs twitching while he waited for the doctor to arrive. Frank sat next to him eyeing Frankie with annoyance. 

“Could you be still,” snapped Frank. “You keep twitching like that and she’s going to order electric shock therapy.”

Frankie turned to him with a puzzled expression. “Dr. Morgan says they don’t use electric shock therapy on people like me.”

Frank leaned forward. “They save it for the really special cases. Twitchers are always the first to go.” He marveled at the horrified flash in Frankie’s eyes. It really was too easy. 

Frankie quickly turned away from Frank but stopped himself from making any movement other than breathing. He heard the office door open and turned to see Dr. Janice Morgan enter the room with his chart in her hand. She was wearing her usual trousers and button down shirt. Her hair was cut short above her ears and she never wore makeup.

“Such a lesi,” Frank mumbled next to him.

Frankie wasn’t sure what that meant but decided it would probably be best not to ask Dr. Morgan. “Hi, Dr. Morgan,” Frankie said cheerfully as he looked up at the doctor with a smile. 

She dropped the chart from in front of her face with a smile of her own. The moment she saw him the smile disappeared. “Frankie, well, hello there. You seem to have changed a bit since I last saw you.” She walked to her desk and sat down in the big over sized leather chair, her eyes never leaving Frankie who felt like he was being dissected under her gaze. 

“I just wanted to change,” he said softly, repeating the lines Frank was feeding him. “It hurt you know, but I was a real big boy about it.”

“I’m sure you were.” Dr. Morgan leaned into her desk and fixed her eyes on him. “May I ask you something, Frankie?”

“Mmmhmm.”

“Did Frank have anything to do with this?”

Frank gritted his teeth. If only he had access to a body he would teach the cunt to mind her own business. He continued to tell Frankie what to say and was actually a little surprised that the fruit loop went along with it as well as he did. By the time the hour had ended they had completely convinced Dr. Morgan that Frankie was just ready to exercise some adult decisions. He told her that he had always wanted a tattoo, thanks to the ones he saw on famous people, but had been too afraid to get one. Now that he was on his own (in a manner of speaking) he decided it was time to conquer that fear. And so he did. 

“So, the pills are working for you? You haven’t had any problems with Frank?”

Frankie opened his mouth to answer but closed it because Frank had burst into riotous laughter beside him. He pressed his lips together and tried to drown out the sound of laughing so he could focus on answering Dr. Morgan’s questions. 

“Frank’s not a problem for me anymore, Doc. Sometimes he asks to come out but I just take a pill and then he goes away.”

“That’s wonderful, Frankie,” she smiled. “Didn’t I tell you that if you just gave it some time it would get better? Before you know it Frank will melt back into you completely. You’ll never have to worry about him hurting anyone else again.”

“What a bunch of bullshit!” Frank yelled. “Jim had it coming. I do you a favor and she acts like I went around stealing old lady’s handbags. What a bitch!” He sighed heavily and glared at the Doctor, wishing she could see him in that moment. “Hurry up, Frankie. Get this over with.”

Frankie gave Dr. Morgan his most sincere smile. “Yeah, no worries.”

* * *

“You’re really going to get me into a lot of trouble if you keep changing me like you are,” Frankie said as he and Frank walked along the sidewalk.

“Are you kidding me? She believed everything you told her! But, just between you and me I think she’s one shitty doctor if she bought that pile of crap. First thing I’m going to do when I get out is fire her.”

“You can’t fire her,” Frankie said angrily. “She’s a state doctor.”

Frankie may not have been smart socially but all the time he’d spent in the institute had taught him quite a bit about state laws. When Jim died Frankie became a ward of the state. It wasn’t but a few years ago that he found out he had a maternal grandmother who had left him her estate when she died. He was sitting on a pile of cash that numbered somewhere around half a million dollars. He didn’t know if Frank knew about the money, if he did, he never said anything.

“Besides,” Frankie continued. “Just because I let you out sometimes doesn’t mean you’re going to always be out.”

Frank wanted to tell Frankie that it was only a matter of time but decided to let the twerp believe what he wanted. Frank would continue to come out and Frankie would run back to his own personal Disney Land whenever things became too much. Before long, Frankie wouldn’t be able to find his way back and Frank would really be free. 

“You did good today, Frankie. I just wanted to tell you that. To tell you thank you.”

Frankie kept his head down and watched as his feet walked over the cracks in the concrete. “What’s it like for you?” he asked softly. “When you’re inside, what’s it like?”

“It’s dark,” Frank replied. “There’s no light, no birds or trees. I have eyes, but they see only blackness. I have ears but they hear only what you let me. I have no hands and no legs to run away. You’re lucky, Frankie. You have somewhere great to escape to. I only have the darkness.”

Frankie stopped walking and he and Frank just stood facing one another. Frankie felt like he wanted to cry. He had always assumed that Frank’s inside wasn’t very fun but this…he could have never imagined. “I’m sorry, Frank.”

“I guess I can’t really blame you,” Frank said as he started to walk again and Frankie ran to catch up. “You needed me. I took care of your problem and ended up getting us both into trouble. But when we left the institute I knew.” He clenched his teeth and squeezed his hands into fists. “I knew I’d never live in that darkness again.” He gave Frankie a hard glare. “You owe me, Frankie. You owe me and it’s time to pay up.”

“But…but I’m scared to go away forever,” Frankie said with a trembling lip.

“What do you have to be scared of?” Frank snapped. “You have a whole world at your disposal. Not to mention your little princess, who’s probably getting really ticked off that you haven’t nailed her yet.”

“Nailed her?”

Frank groaned and tugged at his hair. “Oh, forget it. It doesn’t matter. All that matters is that you have some place nice to go to. Well I don’t! Just a few days, that’s all. Just give me a few days and you can go do…whatever it is you do.”

Frankie thought about it for a moment. Maybe Frank was right. He had saved Frankie and then been banished to this dark place. It sounded terrifying and he was so thankful that he had his horse, his castle and his beautiful princess. Was it really so much for Frankie to give Frank just a few days to enjoy being alive?

“Tonight,” Frankie finally said. “We’ll do it tonight.”

Frank’s lips curled into a grin. “Now, that’s what I like to hear.”

* * *

When Frankie made it back to the house the sky had darkened with gray clouds. Frank had gone away, presumably to his dark place. There was a van parked in front of the house with **Gerry’s Locks and More** printed on the side. He opened the front gate and saw Gerard sitting on the porch smoking a cigarette. As he wondered what the van was doing there he caught a whiff of Mona’s cooking through the open windows and his stomach growled. 

He approached the porch with a smile and felt his entire body droop when Gerard didn’t smile back. “Hello, Gerard.”

Gerard looked up into Frankie’s face with a blank stare. “Frankie?”

He furrowed his brows. “Yeah, who else would I be?” For a moment Frankie panicked, thinking that Frank had gone behind his back and told Gerard the truth, but Gerard smiled and the panic eased up.

“Just checking. Crazy shit going on around here today.”

“What do you mean?” Frankie asked as he sat down next to Gerard on the stoop. It was then he noticed the small white sports car in the driveway. “Whose car is that?”

“I think we’re getting a new roommate. She seems pretty cool but…”

“She?” Frankie asked excitedly. “A girl moved in?”

Gerard laughed. “Not yet. She’s not one of us. She’s Mona’s granddaughter and I think her mom is trying to get them to stay here. We got kicked out of the house while they’re all talking.” He pointed down the street where Frankie saw the rest of the housemates playing with a soccer ball. 

Frankie looked back over his shoulder and tried to sneak a peek through the window. All he could see was the empty living room and the hallway to the kitchen. “I have to go to the bathroom,” he said suddenly. He stood up and started up the porch steps.

Gerard looked up at him with a smile. “Go on kid, go introduce yourself.”

“I’m not…I’m going to the bathroom.”

Gerard nodded. “Well, go on before you piss your pants or something.”

“I wouldn’t do that,” Frankie said, sounding hurt. “I’m not a baby! Look at me, I’m all tough now. Why do you always talk to me like I’m a little kid?”

Gerard dropped his eyes and shook his head. “I’m sorry, Frankie. These last few days have just been really…weird. I know you’re not a baby, man. You kind of remind me of my little brother, Mikey. I miss him. I guess that’s why I treat you like that.”

“Don’t worry, Gerard. Mikey will come see you soon.”

“You better go on to the bathroom,” Gerard said, turning away and continuing on his cigarette. 

Frankie opened the screen door and closed it carefully behind him. He could hear Mona talking in the kitchen, the sounds of pots and pans being moved around and the smell of friend chicken wafted through the air. His stomach growled again and he bit his lip waiting for Mona to come out of the kitchen and tell him to go away. When she didn’t, he started slowly down the hall until he could peer around the corner without being seen. Mona was standing at the island chopping up vegetables. A woman was peering into the refrigerator and when the door closed and she turned around he knew she must be Mona’s daughter. She looked just like her. 

“We’re not leaving,” the woman said with a smile as she sipped the diet Coke in her hand. “I’m here and I’m not going anywhere. Ginger can finish up her Senior year and then start college in the fall. It’ll be great.”

“Karen, please be reasonable,” Mona said as she scooped a handful of sliced potatoes into her hands and dumped them into a frying pan on the stove. “This isn’t the place for you and certainly not a place for Ginger. Do you know what kind of people live here?”

“Yes, I do. People who have messed up and are trying to get better. People who just need a little help before they head back into society. This is the perfect place for Ginger, Mom. Social work is what she wants to study after she graduates.”

“This isn’t a damn college class,” Mona said with a shake of her head. “These men here, some of them are drug addicts. Some of em’ are here for violent crimes. And some of them are here because they just can’t live out there. You really want your daughter around a bunch of criminals?”

“The locksmith is upstairs installing locks on Ginger’s door. She’ll be fine and so will I.” She brushed her mother’s hair gently. “Besides, you trust these men, and I trust you.” She sighed and rested her head on Mona’s shoulder. “And you’re sick. When Dad died and you turned the house into this place it was always with the understanding that I would take over if you ever needed me to. Well you need me now. You need me and I’m here. Don’t you think Ginger deserves to be with her grandmother right now? To spend time with you before it’s too late?”

Mona braced her hands against the counter. “They don’t know,” she said softly. “They don’t know about the cancer. I hate to say it but I’ve grown fond of these guys. Underneath it all they aren’t so bad. I need to know that they’ll still have a place here. And of course there’s Frankie. He needs me.”

“I’ll look after Frankie, Mom. I’ll look after them all. Besides, you’re getting treatments and miracles happen every day.”

Mona gently placed her hand on Karen’s shoulder. “You’re still young, Karen. You’re beautiful. Don’t waste the rest of your life away like I did. Get married, have more babies. Just live. Besides, after I am gone you and Ginger can’t live here with these men all by yourselves. I won’t allow it.”

“We won’t be,” Karen said.

“What do you mean? You’re seeing someone?”

“We’ll talk about it later,” Karen smiled and kissed her mother’s cheek. She walked to the back door and opened it. “Ginger! Go on and get your bags out of the car.”

A girl with long brown hair hurried up the back steps and into the kitchen with a smile. She was beautiful. All the air stilled in Frankie’s lungs as he watched her hug Mona and grab a strawberry off the kitchen counter. Even his princess wasn’t beautiful like that. Frankie took a step back and tried to hurry down the hall before she came out of the kitchen but he wasn’t fast enough. His back was to her and his hand was almost on the door when she called out to him. 

“Hi!”

He turned around slowly and smiled. She smiled back and walked toward him with her arm outstretched. “I’m Ginger, Mona’s granddaughter.”

Frankie took her hand and felt his entire body warm. “Hi, I’m Frankie.”

She smiled sweetly and seemed to be waiting for him to do something. It was only after she cleared her throat that he realized he was still holding her hand. 

“Oh, I’m sorry,” he said, snatching his hand away like it was on fire.

“It’s okay,” Ginger giggled. “I really like your hair.”

Frankie subconsciously ran his hand over his head. “You do?”

She nodded and pointed at the tattoo on his neck. “Did that hurt?”

Frankie shoved his hands in his pockets and shook his head hard. “No, I was super brave about it.”

“It’s very cool,” she smiled. “Well, I’m going to go grab my things. And I think dinner’s almost ready so we should go get everyone else.”

“I’ll get them,” Frankie said. 

They walked out together, Ginger still talking about his hair and the piercings. Saying she wanted to get a tattoo but her mother wouldn’t let her. She said goodbye and went towards the white sports car while Frankie went out to the street to gather the other housemates. He glanced back at her once and she caught his eye and smiled at him. Frankie took a deep breath. He liked her. He liked Ginger a lot and he was positive she liked him too. He may have been naïve, but he wasn’t so green that didn’t know Ginger would stop liking him if she ever met Frank. 

He reached into his pocket and pulled out the bottle of pills Dr. Morgan had given him earlier that day. He had promised Frank he would flush them when he got home but that was before he met Ginger. He couldn’t let Frank out now, not when something really good had finally happened to him. Frankie opened the bottle and took out one of the small white pills. 

“Sorry Frank,” he mumbled before popping it into his mouth and swallowing it dry. “Sorry.”


End file.
